When your team hasn’t won a division title since 2015, hasn’t made a playoff appearance since 2017, and have posted seven consecutive losing campaigns, you need all the young talent you can get.
The Carolina Panthers are coming off a sixth straight season with 10 or more losses. Since earning a wild card berth in ’17, the franchise owns a combined 36-80 win-loss record the past seven years. There is an air of optimism surrounding the club after Dave Canales’s squad won four its final nine games in 2024. General manager Dan Morgan was busy this offseason in addressing the team’s horrific defense in free agency.
This year’s NFL draft will take place at Lambeau Field beginning on April 24. The Panthers own the eighth overall pick, and there are some whispers that they could be on the move next week.
“Two teams that continue to come up as trade-back candidates are the Carolina Panthers (No. 8) and Minnesota Vikings (No. 24),” explained ESPN draft analyst Matt Miller. “The Panthers have nine total selections, but could be tempted to trade back for more Day 2 picks, which they would use on the defensive line and at wide receiver. And Minnesota has the fewest picks this year with four, so it could be looking for more draft capital.”
A closer look at the Panthers’ selections explains why they might be willing to make some moves. While the No. 8 pick could land them a blue-chip prospect, they don’t have their own second-round pick. The 39th overall selection belongs to the Chicago Bears as part of the deal that enabled Carolina to grab the first pick in 2023 and draft quarterback Bryce Young. Hence the Panthers’ second-rounder is No. 57, which was acquired in a previous trade with the Rams. The team’s third-round pick is the 74th overall selection.
Morgan has six picks on Day 3, including a pair of fourth-rounders, and three choices in Round 5. By all indications, he and the team are capable of anything during the three-day process.
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